biological sciences
Electric eels make leaping attacks
Jun. 6, 2016—Vanderbilt biologist Kenneth Catania has accidentally discovered that electric eels can make leaping attacks that dramatically increase the strength of the electric shocks they deliver. In doing so, Catania has confirmed a 200-year-old observation by famous 19th-century explorer and naturalist Alexander von Humboldt.
‘Young Scientist’ showcases high schoolers’ research at Vanderbilt
Jun. 2, 2016—High school students performing advanced research at Vanderbilt have the opportunity to share their findings with the scientific community through a journal of their own.
The Chronicle of Higher Education: Building a Better ‘Bridge’ to the Ph.D.
May. 19, 2016—The Fisk-Vanderbilt Master's-to-Ph.D. Bridge Program, which supports minority STEM graduate students, is the subject of a feature story in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Neanderthal DNA has subtle but significant impact on human traits
Feb. 11, 2016—The first study that directly compares Neanderthal DNA in the genomes of a significant population of adults of European ancestry with their clinical records confirms that this archaic genetic legacy has a subtle but significant impact on modern human biology.
Kudos: Read about faculty and staff awards, appointments and achievements
Jan. 26, 2016—Read about the latest faculty and staff awards, appointments and achievements.
The most popular research stories of 2015
Dec. 28, 2015—With discoveries ranging from the origins of consciousness to the end of the universe, 2015 was a year of incredibly diverse research at Vanderbilt University.
New online tool created to tackle complications of pregnancy and childbirth
Nov. 11, 2015—An interdisciplinary team of biologists and medical researchers have created a new platform, which they call GEneSTATION specifically designed to leverage the growing knowledge of human genomics and evolution to advance scientific understanding of human pregnancy and translate it into new treatments for the problems that occur when this complex process goes awry.
New class of DNA repair enzyme discovered
Oct. 29, 2015—A new class of DNA repair enzyme has been discovered which demonstrates that a much broader range of damage can be removed from the double helix in ways that biologists did not think were possible.
Electric eel: most remarkable predator in animal kingdom
Oct. 28, 2015—Recent research by Vanderbilt University biologist Ken Catania of the electric eel has revealed that it is not primitive creature that it has been portrayed as. Instead, it has a sophisticated control of the electrical fields it generates that makes it one of the most remarkable predators in the animal kingdom.
Enroll now in Vanderbilt Osher Lifelong Learning fall classes
Sep. 1, 2015—The Osher Lifelong Learning classes at Vanderbilt this fall draw from professors' research in areas that include earth science, Hebrew Bible, music history, urban planning and more.
The pronoun ‘I’ is becoming obsolete
Aug. 19, 2015—Recent microbiological research has shown that plants and animals, including humans, are not autonomous individuals but are holobionts: biomolecular networks that consist of visible hosts plus millions of invisible microbes.
Study reveals how protein helps cells tolerate DNA damage
Jul. 16, 2015—Vanderbilt and Stanford investigators have discovered how a protein that's part of the DNA replication "machinery" helps cells tolerate DNA damage.